Many second-home buyers in the Vail Valley plan to rent the property for part of the year to offset what it costs to own. That can work. Whether you’re allowed to rent, how many nights, and what it costs depend first on which jurisdiction the property sits in, and then on its homeowners association.
Two homes ten minutes apart can fall under very different rules. A postal address won’t always tell you which rules apply. Beaver Creek, for example, has an Avon mailing address but isn’t part of the Town of Avon.
If you’re buying in Vail, Avon, Beaver Creek, Edwards or EagleVail and rental income is part of your plan, here’s how the rules differ and how I check a specific property before we write an offer.
Three layers of rules
Rental rights in the valley come from up to three places:
The town or county, which handles licensing, caps, inspections and lodging taxes
The HOA or metro district, which sets minimum stays, registration, management requirements and sometimes outright bans
The building’s management structure, such as front-desk operations or rental programs
The strictest layer wins. A town may allow unlimited rentals while the HOA requires 30-night minimums.
Town of Vail: registration, no cap
Vail regulates short-term rentals through annual registration rather than a cap on the number of units. The town’s STR page lists a $260 annual registration fee for owner-managed and off-site-managed units, along with a fire inspection. The town code requires registration before you advertise the unit.
On the tax side, Vail’s lodging tax on short-term rentals totals 10.8%, according to the Colorado Sun’s reporting. In November 2025, voters rejected Ballot Issue 2A, which would have added a 6% excise tax on short-term rentals for workforce housing and brought the total to 16.8%. It failed 916 to 881.
How I read that: In Vail, town rules seldom stop a buyer from renting. The HOA documents and the building’s rental structure usually decide what you can do. Given how close that vote was, I wouldn’t build a purchase around the assumption that rental costs will stay where they are.
Town of Avon: location within town decides it
Avon’s rules depend on where the property sits:
Short-term rentals are allowed only inside the town’s Short Term Rental Overlay.
In the Town Core, the number of licenses isn’t capped, as long as the building permits rentals. The 2022 expansion added Beaver Creek West Condos, Avon Lake Villas, Falcon Point, The Ascent, Basecamp and Lakeside Terrace, among others.
Inside the overlay but outside the Town Core, full STR licenses are capped at 15% of the residential units in each property.
Two other license types aren’t subject to that cap: a Limited license, which allows fewer than 42 rental days a year, and a Resident-Occupied license for full-time residents living on-site.
The detail buyers most often miss: under the 2022 ordinance, an existing license stays in effect until the rental use stops, the license is revoked, or ownership changes. In a capped building, the seller’s rental history doesn’t mean you’ll get a full license. Another owner may be waiting for that slot.
Avon also requires its own business and sales-tax licenses. The town collects 10% on short-term stays: 4% sales tax, 4% accommodations tax and a 2% short-term rental tax for community housing. If you book through Airbnb or VRBO, the platform collects it.
Edwards, EagleVail and unincorporated Eagle County: the HOA decides
In May 2025, Eagle County commissioners decided not to adopt a county short-term rental ordinance. In unincorporated areas, including Edwards, EagleVail, Beaver Creek and much of the valley outside the towns, regulation is left to HOAs and metro districts.
The county lodging tax in unincorporated areas doubled from 2% to 4% on January 1, 2026, after voters narrowly approved Issue 1A (4,069 to 4,014).
How I read that: In Edwards or EagleVail, the declaration and HOA rules are effectively the only rental regulations. Some communities allow short stays freely, and others require 30-night minimums or prohibit short-term rentals. You’ll only know for a specific property by reading the documents.
How I evaluate rental potential before an offer
When rental income matters to a buyer, this is my order of operations:
Confirm the jurisdiction. I verify whether the property is in the Town of Vail, the Town of Avon (and if so, whether it’s in the Town Core), or unincorporated county.
Read the HOA documents for rental provisions. I look for minimum stays, registration, required management companies, rental fees, guest limits and parking rules.
In Avon, check license availability. If the property is outside the Town Core, I find out whether a full license would be available to a new owner before we make an offer.
Ask for actual rental records. I want nights booked, gross revenue, management fees and cleaning costs, not a manager’s projection.
Weigh rental flexibility against financing. As I covered in last month’s post on condo financing, a hotel-style rental program can make a building ineligible for conventional loans. The features that make a unit easiest to rent can make it harder to finance.
Factor rental rights into the price. The Colorado Association of REALTORS noted in September that in Summit County, properties near the resorts with short-term rental opportunities are outperforming more restricted ones. A unit that can’t be rented short-term will attract fewer buyers when you sell, and its price should reflect that.
Practical Takeaways
Identify the actual jurisdiction. A postal address can be misleading.
Read the HOA’s rental provisions before you schedule a second showing.
In Avon, assume the seller’s license won’t transfer, and confirm whether a new one is available.
Ask for 12–24 months of real rental statements.
Run your numbers on the assumption that local STR taxes and fees could rise.
Bottom Line
If rental income is part of how you’ll afford a Vail Valley second home, rental rights affect the value of the specific property, so confirm them first. The strongest purchases I see are ones where the buyer verified the rules, the license path and the real rental history before deciding what to offer.
Considering a second home in Vail, Avon, Beaver Creek or Edwards and planning to rent it part of the year? Send me the address. I’ll confirm which rules apply, review the HOA’s rental provisions with you, and help you work out what the property is worth with those limits in mind.
